Saturday, May 14, 2011

The joy and pain of the farmers market

So, I love going to farmers markets. I love looking at the rows of beautiful produce and wonderful artisan foods. But if I have to be totally honest, sometimes places like this (farmers markets, Granville Island) cause me deep anxiety. Look at all this amazing food that I should be cooking! Look at all this organic produce I should be eating! It's so beautiful, I should be buying it all... but it's expensive and I don't know what to make (and sometimes don't want to make anything at all and would rather just order pizza).

Well today was the opening day of the Vancouver Farmers Market at Trout Lake and I dragged James out of bed at the ungodly hour of 9 am so we could walk over. It's a pretty good market because on top of the anxiety causing foods, there's always stuff that I actually know what to do with. Like eggs, bacon, lettuce.

As we were leaving, I had to pee (again. oh the joys of pregnancy) and when I got out James filled me in on the conversations he'd overheard as people were leaving the market.

A Young couple walks by.
Him: Oh, weren't we going to get some lettuce?
Her: Right, yeah, we should get some lettuce.
Pause. Look at each other.
Her: I don't want to eat a salad.

Two senior women are walking together, and one is saying with regret "... but then you'd have to cook it right away. When would you do that? I don't want to do that..."

You mean other people have market anxiety too? This may be one of the greatest realizations of my life.

I live in beautiful, rainy Vancouver, and these days I'm kicking around the city with my new son and my smarty pants husband. In a previous (and future) life I am a meteorologist. I express my non-artistic self through crafts (knitting, weaving, sewing just a bit), and sometimes if the mood is right I love to cook and bake. I write about what's going on in my life and these days that's motherhood.